I follow a lot of other bloggers on Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat. This means I am constantly surrounded by other people who do exactly the same as me, write a blog. It makes me shrug off the work I do on my blog, I always say to people "loads of other people do it" and I don't always see my blog as anything special. This is one of the main reasons I didn't mention my blog on my CV, I didn't think employers or recruiters would take it seriously and would scoff at my little hobby. However, a year ago, when I was beginning to update my CV for full time jobs after uni, I decided to add my blog to my CV. I was applying for social media and marketing jobs, I had no other experience apart from helping create content at my part time retail job so my blog was really my only attempt to land my dream career. One part of me felt slightly stupid for putting my blog on my CV, was it something people would take seriously? Would they be impressed? Would they laugh me out of the building in interviews? These were all questions I asked myself before adding "Founder and Editor - Live Laugh Lipstick" to my CV and eventually being proud of myself as I listed all the skills I had. Even if you're not applying for social media or marketing jobs, blogging shows you have the initiative to start something on your own. It shows you're hardworking, creative and innovative enough to build a brand and a business by yourself. When I was nearing the end of my job search, it was becoming apparent to me that people were actually impressed with what I had created and were asking questions. I would sit down in interviews and be asked "so, I'm really interested to learn about Live Laugh Lipstick, please tell me everything about it!" I would be asked "do you have help or do this on your own?" and "would you want to do this full time?" These were such encouraging questions, they made me feel like I had started something amazing, that people were impressed with what I had created single handed in my bedroom and despite my own criticisms, I was actually okay at it.
I think the thing to remember in terms of blogs is the amount of people who start them. Many set them up, write a couple of posts and then get tired or bored of it. Maybe because no one is reading it within the first week or they wanted to start a blog to receive free products. If you've kept up a blog for longer than about 6 months, you're doing good! I think many people, including myself, underestimate themselves. I didn't believe my blog was as good as others and therefore I didn't think employers would take it seriously. However I've had so many interesting and engaging conversations with people in job interviews who seem genuinely interested in the 'business' I've created and I would always encourage others to add it to their CV to also show yourself off to employers in the best way possible.
Have you added your blog to your CV?
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